Big-wall climber Sasha DiGiulian had spent the last three years preparing for a career-defining ascent of one of the most challenging routes up the face of the famed granite cliff known as El Capitán in Yosemite national park. All she and her partner needed was a two-week window of favorable weather. They appeared to get one on 3 November.
DiGiulian felt jolts of fear during her training, she said, induced by the sudden 2,600ft of exposure she felt as she rappelled down to practice on the most challenging sections of the iconic California peak. But her nerves calmed when ascending from the base, allowing her to focus more intently on the moves and completing each pitch – a measurement that references a length of the rope that climbers use to secure themselves to the rock.
